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Old 01-29-2017, 01:55 PM   #7
MYTraveler
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City: West Coast
Join Date: Apr 2014
Posts: 1,790
My biggest concern would be fuel tank(s). If they start leaking, you have a real big problem -- not just repair costs, by contamination liability if much of anything gets pumped overboard, and that liability may easily exceed the value of most any recreational boat.

My last boat had 500 gallon metal tanks outboard of the main engines. One time, I received an after-hours emergency call from the dockmaster that I was pumping diesel overboard. The immediate solution was to shut off the bilge pump, but I scrambled for a more permanent solution, only to learn that the engines have to come out to access the fuel tanks, unless I want to cut a whole (or two) in the side of the boat. Fortunately, it turned out that a mechanic had disconnected a fuel line to the genset and allowed fuel to siphon back into the bilge. In any event, I have never looked at fuel tanks the same. Now I can't help but see them as a disaster waiting to happen -- especially the metal ones. The configuration on my current boat is integral fiberglass. The main tanks are reasonably accessible. I would look for something like that if I were buying another boat (new or used).
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